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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24067057">Waiting Game</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/eridol/pseuds/eridol'>eridol</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Naruto</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Friends to Lovers, Short &amp; Sweet, i didnt specify ages since this was just a lil unspecific drabble but this is probably shippuden, or maybe post-shippuden if you like the "neji lives" aus</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 19:28:52</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,672</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24067057</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/eridol/pseuds/eridol</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>You're sick of hiding your feelings for Neji Hyuga, finding the entire situation comparable to a waiting game. Thankfully, the feelings are mutual, and he's sick of waiting, too.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hyuuga Neji/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>72</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Waiting Game</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Neji Hyuga was in love with his teammate.</p><p>You were a kind person from a small, quiet family who he'd never met. Despite having been on the same team as you, Lee, and Tenten for years, he'd never met your family- you always had some sort of excuse, ranging from "My parents are on vacation," to "Oh, they're just shopping," all the way to "They had to go to The Sand Village for a mission and got stuck because of a really bad sandstorm,". </p><p>It had been years and you'd always skirted around the subject of your family, so Neji had come to the conclusion that you were lying about it. You were probably an orphan like many of the other children in Konoha, and he understood why you would want to hide it from others- if he had the option, he would hide the fact that his parents were dead, too, but he was part of a large clan whose business was common knowledge to a lot of the village. He was just glad that your whole personal life wasn't out there like his was.</p><p>That made him worry for you, though. You had friends, but you always seemed like you were on the outside of everything. Just close enough to be a part of their lives but just far enough away to keep your distance- a lot like Neji in that aspect. </p><p>The brunette sighed as he approached the outside of your house- a small compound with only three rooms that was still way too big for you considering that you were almost always alone in the damn thing. It was secluded, in a more remote, forested area of The Leaf Village- away from the other residential sectors. </p><p>You were sitting by yourself on the front steps, looking up at the sky. Even as he came into full view and moved to sit next to you, you didn't look at him, still staring at the stars above you.</p><p>"(y/n). You're alone again," He spoke, taking a good look at you. You were the kind of upset that he was very often- tired eyes, defeated posture, negative feelings rolling off of you through waves. It had been one of those nights for him as well, hence why he'd shown up with the thought of using the excuse that he wanted to train with you, but he was glad he'd walked into whatever it was you were currently going through- if you needed someone, he could be there, and if you didn't, he could leave.</p><p>"Yeah."</p><p>"I came to ask if you'd like to train, but you seem..." Neji trailed off, and you only offered him a small nod in return.</p><p>"Yeah," You let out a small huff, resting one of your hands on the wooden step you were sitting on- right between your thigh and Neji's. Unsure of himself but wanting to reach out and comfort you, Neji gently rested a hand on top of yours. "I'm sorry. I know you're uncomfortable with this, so don't force yourself to-"</p><p>You started to try and deter him, but he only shook his head and held your hand a little tighter, intertwining your fingers. You'd been friends for years, and regardless of that, it felt weird to touch you, as much as he wanted to touch you even more. He wanted to hug you, hold you, kiss you, run his hands through his hair- all of the romantic, gushy things that he saw the happy couples like Naruto and Hinata do, but he was so painfully awkward and bad with emotions that he didn't know where to start. Just holding your hand was enough.</p><p>"I don't mind being uncomfortable if it's for you, and this isn't that bad. Even if you're upset, I enjoy your company," Neji tried to be as comforting as he could, soothingly running his thumb over the back of your hand and looking off to the side. You were staring at him and he could feel it, your confused (e/c) eyes trained on him, probably unbelieving of how kind he was acting. He figured that was his own fault for being as cold as he was sometimes, but he wanted you to know that he could be the soft, loving person you could confide in just as much as he was the rough, strong person you could improve your skills with. "You don't have to if you don't want to, but do you want to talk about it?"</p><p>"I like someone," You admitted, and Neji, accustomed to hiding his feelings, suppressed the frown that threatened to take over his pale lips without much of a struggle. It made sense that you liked someone- it'd been years that he'd known you now and you'd never even dated anyone else or mentioned other crushes, which he was honestly lucky for. He hoped it was him, but the more realistic side of him began to prepare to cope with it and support you if it turned out to be someone else.</p><p>"Oh," That was the only response he could muster as he struggled to swallow the emotions that were bubbling up in his throat. His hand was still holding yours, but the thumb running over your (s/c) skin had stopped, the brunette almost completely frozen. He managed to turn his head to look at you, the lavender cream-hue of his eyes melting into your mesmerizing (e/c).</p><p>"Love someone," You clarified, looking down at you and Neji's interlocked hands.</p><p>"Oh," Neji repeated himself, but it was quiet this time. Nervous. Fearful, even. All the things he felt when he was forced to think about his feelings for you and rather or not you felt the same. His mouth was dry, his heart was beating much faster than it should've been, his lips were chapped, and he was suddenly remembering that he hadn't brought his chapstick with him. Maybe he could use yours- an indirect kiss, a more desperate part of him thought. He always seemed to forget his chapstick when he came to see you.</p><p>"They don't seem to be in love with anyone else, but I doubt they'd love me."</p><p>"Why would you think that?" The brunette asked, confused. You were a little perplexing, and you had your flaws like everyone else did, but something that Neji had come to realize through a lot of hard lessons was that everyone deserved to be loved- even him, and especially you.</p><p>"They have a lot going for them. I do, too, but they're different. They have a big clan and a lot of friends who love them, and I have a few friends, but I think I'm just taking a different path than they are..." You muttered, looking off to the side so you wouldn't have to meet Neji's gaze, which was growing increasingly more heated than it normally was. "Plus, they're too good for me. I can't wait any longer, though. I want to tell them."</p><p>"No one's too good for you," Neji objected, gently squeezing your hand in his. "Excuse me, but I hate it when you talk about yourself like that. You're just as good as the rest of us. Anyone would be lucky to be with you."</p><p>"It's funny that you think that."</p><p>"How so?"</p><p>"Because it's been you all this time," At that, Neji let out a breath that he'd been holding, eyes falling shut as relief consumed him. "It always has."</p><p>"I've wanted this for so long..." The brunette shifted his body so he could face you, still holding your hand with one of his while he moved the other to rest on your face, caressing your cheek. You blinked up at him, seemingly surprised, but you didn't pull away, so he stayed where he was and continued talking. "You don't even know, (y/n). I thought you'd like someone like Lee or Choji, maybe even Kiba, but me?" He asked, tilting his head and allowing himself a small smile. If anything, he'd assumed that you would want someone a little more in touch with their emotions- or, in more blunt terms, someone who wasn't as emotionally repressed as Neji was, but here you were, saying you were in love with him. "I feel so incredibly lucky right now."</p><p>"I think I'm the lucky one," You whispered, placing your free hand on top of the one of his that was on your cheek, your cool skin against his, which was much warmer. It was cool outside- not frigid or anything, but it was a somewhat low temperature with a light breeze, and it was late at night, too. On top of that, you were only in a hoodie you'd taken from him some time back and shorts, and you didn't have socks or shoes on. How long had you been sitting out there?</p><p>"Your parents aren't home, are they?" He asked, tone more knowing than curious, and you only nodded. "It's cold. Let's get you inside."</p><p>With that, he stood, pulling you up with him, your hand still in his. The two of you walked through the front door that'd been left open and entered your entryway before shutting it behind you.</p><p>"I'm assuming you're not tired," You smiled, thank God, leading him into your living room, which was relatively empty but perfectly clean. "But I don't feel like training right now if I'm being honest. Wanna stay over?"</p><p>It wasn't too abnormal of a situation- he'd stayed the night at your house plenty of times, but those times were with Lee and Tenten after missions and whatnot, and this felt much more intimate. Still, he couldn't help but nod, walking over to your couch and sitting down with you joining him. There was a pause before you sighed, resting your head on his shoulder, still holding his hand.</p><p>"I love you," Neji finally said it, happy to get those words out after so many years of holding them in.</p><p>"I love you, too."</p>
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